Malaysia’s government on Friday announced it will abolish the mandatory death sentence, four years after the Southeast Asian nation imposed a moratorium on executions. Law Minister Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said the decision was made at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, following a briefing on the findings of a study by an expert committee led by former chief justice Richard Malanjum. The decision means courts will be granted discretionary powers when it comes to penalties for 12 offences that currently prescribe mandatory execution, although it remains unclear how soon the changes will take effect. Wan Junaidi said the cabinet also agreed to conduct further studies on replacement penalties for the 12 offences, which include drug trafficking, and 22 other crimes that prescribe death sentences at the court’s discretion. “This is a significant move to ensure amendments to the relevant Acts take into consideration the principles of proportionality and constitutionality of whatever proposals are put forward by the government in future,” he said in a statement. The government will, at the same time, study measures aimed at improving on the nation’s criminal justice system, including creating pre-sentencing procedures, establishing a Sentencing Council and separate Law Commission, developing sentencing guidelines, implementing prison reforms and ensuring sentences are based on restorative justice, Wan Junaidi said. ‘He knew what he was doing’: Singapore defends Malaysian’s execution This shows the government’s emphasis on “ensuring the rights of all parties are preserved and guaranteed and mirrors the transparency of the nation’s leadership in improving on the country’s dynamic criminal justice system”. The move was welcomed by human rights activists who have pushed for years for the abolition of Malaysia’s death penalty . At least 270 people have been executed there – predominantly for drug offences – since 1980, according to Amnesty International Malaysia. Abolishing the mandatory death penalty is a good step moving forward! https://t.co/1GSaSRftWT — Nalini Elumalai (@nalinielumalai) June 10, 2022 “Abolishing the mandatory death penalty is a good step moving forward!” read a Twitter post by Nalini Elumalai from Article 19 Malaysia, a human rights organisation. The Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network said it welcomed the move, noting that the current mandatory regime “does not provide justice as it deprives judges of the discretion to sentence based on the situation of each individual offender”. It said other reforms, including redefining drug offences for drug mules and other “exploited individuals” with the drug trade as well as strengthened rehabilitative justice and victim support were required. Amnesty International’s executive director in Malaysia, Katrina Jorene Maliamauv, urged the government to “go further and work towards full abolition of this cruel punishment”. “The government should table the necessary amendments in Parliament without delay and establish a full review of all cases involving the mandatory death penalty with a view to commuting these sentences,” she said. Earlier this year, the government pleaded with neighbouring Singapore to grant clemency to Malaysian citizen Nagaenthran Dharmalingam . However, the 34-year-old, who had a low IQ, was hanged in the city state on April 27 for a 2010 drug trafficking conviction. Prime Minister Ismail Sabri Yaakob and Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah were praised for their attempts to convince Singapore to drop its plans to execute Nagaenthran, but were also reminded that it was hypocritical for Malaysia to ask its neighbour to stop enforcing a penalty that was still a significant part of its own justice system. “The Malaysian government should stop playing games with people’s lives and commit to enacting legislation to eliminate the death penalty for all, not just some, drug offences in the next sitting of Parliament,” Linda Lakhdhir, Asia division legal adviser for Human Rights Watch, said in an April statement. “And, if it wants its international calls for clemency to be taken seriously, the government should move swiftly to full abolition of the death penalty, an inherently cruel punishment wherever it is carried out.”